Method of making adjustable fastener track



y 21, 1959 A. E. CARLILE 2,895,170 Memos OF MAKING ADJUSTABLE FASTENERTRACK Filed May 1, 1956 INVENTOR. /4LFRD E C/LQL/LE Uni SW6 a r OFMAKING ADJUSTABLE FASTENER TRACK Alfred E. Carlile, Meadville, =Pa.,assignor to Talon, Inc.,

" r a corporation of Pennsylvania METHOD This invention relates to animproved method of making an adjustable fastener comprising a flexibletrack having a slide member arranged thereon for movement therealong andwhich is adapted to be locked selectively in various adjustablepositions along the track.

-It is one of the objects of the present invention to produce a flexibletrack for adjustable fasteners made of a plastic material having a stopportion integrally arranged therewith for limiting the movement of theslider therealong.

It is another object of the invention to produce an im proved track foradjustablefasteners which is simple and inexpensive in its constructionand, at the same time, efficient and effective in its use.

' It is a further object of this invention to provide a new and novelmethod of manufacturing flexible track for adjustable fasteners made ofa plastic material.

Various other objects and advantages of this invention will be moreapparent in the course of the following specification, and will beparticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, there is shown for the purpose ofillustration, articles produced by my method and apparatus for carryingit out.

' In these drawingsi Fig. 1 is a planview of an adjustable fastenertrack made in accordance with the present invention having a sliderincorporated therewith,

Fig. 2 is a side elevational view of the track- 'and slider a's'shown inFig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a perspective view, partly in section, of one form ofapparatus for making the fastener track in accordance with my invention,and

Fig. 4 is an enlarged section taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Adjustable fasteners are well known and are now in common use. As shownin Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, such a fastener consists generallyof aflexible track 2 having a slider 3 arranged thereon for longitudinalmovement therealong. There is pivotally attached to the slider a pull'or manipulating member 4 having a locking cam or prong portion 5carried thereby which cooperates with spaced-apart transverse notches orcorrugations 6 arranged along the upper surface of the track 2 There isalso carried by the slider 3, a loop portion 7 to which one part of agarment or article is adapted to be attached. The track may be made ofany suitable flexible material but is preferably made of a plasticmaterial, such as nylon. The type of fastener to which the presentinvention relates is shown in the patent to Noel Statham, No. 2,437,765issued March 16, 1948.

In accordance with the present invention, one end of the track 2 isflattened and deformed so as to provide a substantially enlargedarrowhead portion 8 which acts as a stop for limiting the movement ofthe slider 3 along the track in one direction. The opposite end of thetrack is preferably rounded, as at 9, so as to aid in threading2,895,170 Patented July 21, 1959 the slider onto the track in a wellknown manner. There is also provided preferably a longitudinallyextending central groove or well 10 which extends throughout the lengthof the track.

Attention now is directed to Fig. 2 of the drawings wherein there isshown one form of apparatus for practicing my improved method forforming lengths of fastener track- At the extreme left-hand side of thisfigure, there is shown a suitable extrusion die 12 which forms andextrudes the track so as to provide a continuous strip or length oftrack T substantially T-shaped in cross section. If desired, the. trackmay be molded instead of extruded.

After the track is extruded, it passes between a pair of opposed rolls13 and 14. The upper roll 13 has a series of spaced-apart ribs 15arranged around the periphery thereof which form the notches orindentations 6 at equal spaced-apart intervals along the upper surfaceof the track to either side of the well or central groove 10. Also,there is arranged around the periphery of the lower roll 14, a series ofspaced-apart ribs 16 which form similar indentations or notches 17 alongthe lower surface of the track. That is to say, the two rolls 13 and 14co-operate with one another to form a series of indentations or notchesalong both the upper and lower surfaces of the track as it passestherebetween.

The continuous length of track is then moved along until the end thereofabuts a stop 18 arranged in its path, as shown at the extreme right-handside of Fig. 2. This stop is preferably adjustable so that it can beadjusted for the desired length of track to be cut from the continuouslength.

Forwardly of this stop 18 there is arranged above the path of thecontinuous strip, a heated combination punch and cut-off knife 19 andbelow the strip, there is arranged preferably an unheated die 20 withwhich the punch and cut-01f die 19 co-operates in a manner and for apurpose to be presently described. A knife portion 21 is arrangedcentrally of the punch and is adapted to cut a length of track from thecontinuous length. The punch portions 22 to either side of the knifeportion 21 are constructed and arranged so as to flatten and. deform theend portions of two successive track lengths simultaneously inco-operation with the die 19 whereby an arrowhead stop portion 8 isformed on adjacent ends of two successive fastener lengths as they arebeing cut from the length of continuous track.

' At a point between the rolls 13 and 14 and the combination punch andcut-ofi knife 19, there is arranged preferably an adjustable cut-offknife 23 for cutting the fastener lengths from the strip and to providethe rounded ends 9 on the ends of the fastener lengths cut from thecontinuous length of track.

In practicing the method in accordance with my invention with theapparatus shown, both the stop 18 and the cut-off knife 23 are firstadjusted the proper distance from the combination punch and knife 19 forthe desired fastener track lengths to be cut from the continuous length.The extruding machine (not shown) is set into operation and as the stripis extruded by the die 12, it passes between the rolls 13 and 14 whichform the transversely extending indentations or notches 6 and 17 alongthe upper and lower surfaces, respectively, of the strip. When the endof the strip contacts the stop 18, the combination punch and knife 19 ismoved into engagement with the strip applying heat and pressure theretoin combination with the opposed die 20 so as to form two adjacentarrowhead portions 8 on two successive track lengths and tosimultaneously cut the strip therebetween.

The cut-off knife 23 is also brought into engagement with the stripsimultaneously with the action of the com bination punch and knife 19,so as to sever the inner track length for the strip, thereby providingtwo track lengths with each having an arrowhead stop portion 8 arrangedat one end thereof. The strip is then moved forwardly until the-cut endof the strip again abuts the stop .18 and the above-operations arerepeated.

Thus, it will be seen that by the practice of my invention, two fastenerlengths are formed at one time each being complete with a stop portion8, and in readiness to receive a slider 3.

As a result of my invention, it will be seen that there is not onlyproduced a new and novel plastic track for adjustable fasteners but alsoan improved method of manufacturing the same.

While I have shown and described an embodiment which my invention mayassume in practice, it will be understood that this embodiment is merelyfor the purpose of illustration and description, and that other formsmay be devised within the scope of my invention as defined in theappended claims.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. The method of making flexible tracks for adjustable fasteners of theclass described which comprises forming by extrusion a continuous stripof track substantially T- shape in cross section, cutting a piece fromsaid strip of suflicient length for two fasteners, passing the cut stripinto and through a heated combination punch and cutoff knife so as tosimultaneously out said strip centrally thereof and applying heat andpressure to either side of the central cutting point thereby deformingthe two opposed ends of the resulting cut lengths whereby two fastenertracks are provided with each having an enlarged portion at one endthereof which acts as a stop when the fasteners are in use.

2. The method of making flexible tracks for adjustable fasteners of theclass described which comprises forming by extrusion a continuous stripof track substantially T- shape in cross section, passing the stripbetween a pair of opposed rolls having a series of spaced-apart ribsaround the peripheries thereof so as to form a series of spacedapartnotches along the top and bottom of the strip throughout the lengththereof, cutting a piece from said strip of suflicient length for twofasteners, and simultaneously cutting said strip centrally thereof andapplying heat and pressure to either side of the central cutting pointthereby deforming the two opposed ends of the resulting cut lengths soas to provide two fastener tracks with each having an enlarged portionat one end thereof which acts as a. stop when the fasteners are in use.

3. The method of making a flexible track for adjustable fasteners of theclass described which comprises providing a continuous strip of tracksubstantially T- shape in cross section made of a plastic material,passing the strip between a pair of opposed rolls having a series ofspaced-apart ribs around the peripheries thereof so as to form a seriesof spaced-apart notches along the top and bottom of the strip throughoutthe length thereof, cutting a piece from said strip of the desiredlength for a fastener, and simultaneously applying heat and pressure toone end of said cut length thereby deforming the same so as to providean enlarged portion at that end of 4 said out length which acts as astop when the fastener is in use.

4. The method of making a flexible track for adjustable fasteners of theclass described which comprises forming by extrusion a continuous stripof track substantially T-shape in cross section, passing the stripbetween a pair of opposed rolls having a series of spaced-apart ribsaround the peripheries thereof so as to form a series of spaced-apartnotches along the top and bottom of the strip throughout the lengththereof, cutting a piece from said length of the desired length for afastener, and simultaneously applying heat and pressure to one end ofsaid cut length thereby deforming the same so as to provide an enlargedportion at that end of said out length which acts as a stop when thefastener is in use.

5. The method of making flexible tracks for adjustable fasteners of theclass described including the steps of forming by extrusion a continuousstrip of track substantially T-shape in cross section, passing the stripbetween a pair of opposed rolls with at least one roll having a seriesof spacedapart ribs arranged around the periphery thereof so as to forma series of spaced-apart notches along the top surface of the strip,passing the strip in under a cutting knife so as to cut a length fromsaid strip of sufllcient length for two fasteners, and finally passingthe strip into and through a heated combination punch and cutting die soas to simultaneously cut the length centrally thereof and apply heat andpressure to either side of the central cutting point thereby deformingthe length whereby two fastener tracks are provided with each having anenlarged portion at one end thereof which acts as a stop when thefastener tracks are in use.

6. The method of making flexible tracks for adjustable fasteners of theclass described including the steps of forming by extrusion a continuousstirp of track substantially T-shape in cross section, passing the stripbetween a pair of opposed rolls with at least one roll having a seriesof spaced-apart ribs arranged around the periphery thereof so as to forma series of spaced-apart notches along the top surface of the strip,moving the end of the strips against a stop, cutting the strip at apredetermined measured distance from the stop so as to provide a lengthof strip of sufficient length for two fasteners, simultaneously cuttingsaid piece centrally thereof and applying heat and pressure to the stripto either side of the central cutting point so as to deform the stripwhereby two fastener tracks are provided with each having an enlargedportion at one end thereof which acts as a stop when the fasteners arein use and repeating the above steps for providing additional fastenertracks.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

